coarse

CEFRC1

/kɔːs/

adjective

Türkçe translations

Translating…

In plain English

  1. 01

    adjective

    Having a rough surface or texture.

  2. 02

    adjective

    Not polite or acceptable because it is rude or offensive.

Examples

  • Her dress was made of coarse wool.

  • Her skin is coarse from years of working outdoors.

At a glance

Sits at C1 on the CEFR scale

Senses
5
Parts of speech
1
Citations
5
Synonyms
5

Also pronounced

  • [kʰo̞ɹs]
  • /ko(ː)ɹs/

Deep Dive

adjective

Extra meanings

  1. Composed of large particles.

  2. Lacking refinement, taste or delicacy.

  3. With a rough texture; not smooth.

More examples

In context

  • He is coarse in manner.

  • coarse language

  • coarse manners

Synonyms

Antonyms

Quick test

Two questions on this entry. Nothing is scored.

Question 1 · Quick check

The sandpaper had a blank texture that quickly smoothed the rough wood.

Practise this properly in the app, where the word comes back before you forget it.

Nearby

Origin

adjective

Adjectival use of course that diverged in spelling in the 18th century. The sense developed from '(following) the usual course' (cf. of course) to 'ordinary, common' to 'lacking refinement', with 'not fine, granular' arising from its application to cloth. Compare the development of mean.